Hey, remember how the Times-Picayune laid off Brett Anderson this week? They’ve gone and changed their mind: “Restaurant critic Brett Anderson has been offered a position writing about restaurants and dining for The Times-Picayune and nola.com upon his return from a fellowship next year … Times-Picayune Editor Jim Amoss said the newspaper has always wanted Anderson to be part of its dining and food coverage.” Well then. [Times-Picayune]

S. Irene Virbila reviews Freddy Smalls, the LA restaurant headed by former Plum chef Charlie Parker: “His cooking is much more polished than you’d expect in such a place, less about heroic quantities and nose-to-tail eating than about sparkling fresh produce, seductive flavors and graceful plating … Who ever imagined a bar with such appealing food? Isn’t this what every neighborhood needs?” [Los Angeles Times]

Eric Asimov on gin, small distilleries, and summer: “That leaves vodka and gin, two spirits that are perpetually at odds yet ever intertwined. Vodka is easier to make — hold that thought — yet fails the hipness test. So for small distillers who want to make names (and possibly profits) for themselves, and do that immediately, gin is the thing.” [New York Times]

Coca-Cola is entering Myanmar for the first time, leaving Cuba and North Korea as the only Coke-less places in the world. Remember this heartwarming story for Trivia Night next week. It’s also an excuse to reference this Seinfeld clip. [AP]